Volunteering through Group Activities

About Committees and Working Groups

Standing Committees Celebrations and Services Denominational Affairs Finance Membership Music The Parish Committee Property Religious Education Social Justice Stewardship Trustees of the Trust Fund

Appointed Committees Budget Human Resources Ministerial Internship Ministry Leadership Development

Ongoing & Ad Hoc Groups Addictions Resources Alliance Anti-Racism Committee Choir Jewish Connections Lay Ministry Library Committee Meditation Group Men's Group Stitch and Sew

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About Committees and Working Groups

N.b., all email contacts provided here should be sent to our "firstparish.info" domain, e.g., "whatever@firstparish.info."

Committees and working groups form a core at First Parish and they come in many flavors. They share the characteristic of "mission" outside the benefit of the individual members and at the same time do provide an opportunity for members to become well acquainted through working together.

Standing Committees are elected at the congregation's annual meeting. Members serve for a defined term and may not serve more than two successive terms. The terms on each committee are staggered so that the entire committee is replaced over a series of years; each year some new members are elected and some remain to provide continuity. Meetings of standing committees are generally open. Persons interested in joining a particular committee might attend meetings, speak with current members, and contact the nominating committee about being placed on the slate for the next election. With the exception of Finance, Parish and Trustees of Trust Funds, participation on the standing committees is not limited to the formal membership of First Parish.

Appointed Committees serve at the request of the Parish Committee. Some appointed committees continue over many years; others may be formed for a particular task and disband when the work is complete.

Ongoing Groups gather and work along lines of particular interest, such as musical performance or service, advocacy and education in and beyond our local community.

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Standing Committees

Members of all standing committees, with the exception of Trustees of Trust Funds, are elected to 3 year terms and may serve no more than two consecutive terms. They may return to a committee after being off for one year. One need not be a legal member of the church in order to serve on most committees. However, Officers, Trustees, Finance Committee and Parish Committee members must have signed the membership book. Serving on a Standing Committee is a significant commitment and attendance is essential. Resignations sometimes are necessary but should not be done lightly.

Celebrations and Services Committee
Plans and presents lay-led worship services, often adding variety and enrichment to the program. It also coordinates services not in the ministers' domain, including those held during the ministers' absence, special Sunday services, and the schedule of summer services. The committee also coordinates, assists with, and supports worship services that take place at times other than Sunday mornings, such as additional Jewish and Pagan worship services, many of which are lay-led.

Denominational Affairs Committee
Keeps the congregation informed of UUA projects and affairs, conducts an annual parish poll of UUA resolutions, nominates prospective delegates to represent the church at district level and continent wide assemblies of the UUA.

Finance Committee
Manages short and long term financial activities for the church. Areas of responsibility include monitoring the church's financial condition, annual budget review, insurance coverage, mortgage administration, & coordination with Stewardship Committee for the stewardship campaign.

Membership Committee
Increases the church's active membership by sponsoring welcoming coffees, providing name tags, maintaining a "Information Table" where literature is provided the inquiring newcomer. The committee also sponsors a variety of social activities such as Round Robin dinners, all church retreats and picnics, which are designed to help integrate new people into the life of the church. Email membership .

Music Committee
Works closely with the music director and organist as the supervising committee responsible for maintenance of the organ and pianos, maintains a music library and is actively involved with the sanctuary sound and recording system. The committee meets at 7 PM on the second Thursday of each month, and coordinates all music events, including the Café entertainment for the Harvest Moon Fair, the Spring Musicale, entertainment for the Auction, and several fund raising concerts and recitals.

The Parish Committee
The Parish Committee is the governing body of the church, elected at the annual Parish meeting by the entire membership. It consists of twelve members. Nine of them are members-at-large who serve a single three year term, with three elected each year. From among them, a chair person is elected by the whole committee. The other three members are the Officers of the church. They are elected to one year terms, and may serve an unlimited number of terms. They are the Parish Clerk, the Treasurer, and the Assistant Treasurer. Each Parish Committee member is assigned to one of the standing committees to act as liaison. The Parish Committee appoints delegates, approves budgets, appoints temporary and permanent committees as needed, makes policy decisions and generally supervises the work of the other committees and the affairs of the church.  Each Parish Committee member has specific liaison responsibility to one or more church committees. Email parish .

Covenant for Parish Committee Members
The goal of this covenant is to guide the Parish Committee in reinforcing and sustaining the unity of our members in worship and fellowship, according to our church's purpose, as stated in First Parish's second by-law: "The purpose of this church is to unite its members in worship and fellowship."

• We will always listen and speak with respect. We will encourage others to do likewise.
• We will actively encourage the participation of all committee members in our deliberations.
• We will encourage speech or activities, whether public or private, that foster unity in the congregation, and we will encourage others to do the same.
• We will strive to promote processes that balance respect for individuals, honoring both their privacy and their reputation, with procedural integrity and transparency.
• While working within these guidelines, we will also seek to define and foster processes for conflict resolution within the congregation.
• We all share these responsibilities.
• We agree to review, as a regular activity of our meetings, our communications, and processes to ensure that we remain true to this covenant.

Property Committee
Supervises the maintenance, repair, and improvement of parish buildings and grounds including parsonage, recommends acquisition of new equipment or furnishings, selects and oversees a variety of maintenance and service contracts, and manages property related volunteer work, such as mowing. See a description of Property Committee activities. Email property .

Religious Education Committee
Works closely with the Director of Religious Education planning curriculum, recruiting teachers, and addressing the religious education concerns of the parents of the children in our congregation. Check the committee's page in our RE section.

Social Justice Committee
Initiates and supports projects of social importance, facilitates congregational participation in these projects and provides resources and support to various Working Groups focused on particular projects. Special projects have included ongoing support of Renewal House and sponsoring the annual Barbara Shinn Conference on a socially significant topic. More news of Social Justice work is provided on a separate page. Email socialjustice .

Contacts for current working groups in Social Justice currently include:

• Debby Lewis is contact for the Affordable Housing work group. Email affordablehousing .
• John Hodges is contact for the Red Cross Blood Drives hosted at First Parish several times a year. Email blooddrive .
• Jean Nagle coordinates the Social-Justice-sponsored donations to Arlington's food pantry. Email foodpantry .
• Jim Austin is the contact for the Social-Justice-sponsored Katrina Relief working group. Email katrinarelief .
• Carol Orme is our contact for the Social-Justice-sponsored Partakers Work Group at First Parish. Email partakers .
• Ann Mathes is contact for the Social-Justice-sponsored Peace working group at First Parish. Email peace .
• David Landskov is contact for the Social-Justice-and-Property-Committee-sponsored Green Sanctuary/Climate Change group.
• David Landskov is contact for the Social-Justice-sponsored Stand for Children project. Email standforchildren .
• Ellen Duranceau is contact for the Unitarian Universalists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals project (UFETA). Email ufeta .
• Mary Fusoni is contact for the urban-suburban connections project. Email usconnections . You may ask her to put on you the email newsletter for "Teen Empowerment" for notification of activities of that group.

Stewardship Committee
Has a year-round focus on assuring regular financial support of the church by members and friends of First Parish. In addition to year long education regarding the financial needs of First Parish, the Stewardship Committee oversees the yearly pledge canvass. Email stewardship .

Trustees of the Trust Fund
Has custody of moneys received by legacy or otherwise, to be held in trust as permanent funds. Income from the regular trust funds is paid periodically to the church treasurer for capital expenses. Trustees may serve any number of three year terms. Email trustees .

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Appointed Committees

Budget Committee
Forms a proposed budget for the next fiscal year, April 1 to March 31, generally during January and February. Harvest Moon Fair:
Plans, advertises, and recruiting workers for the annual church fair in November which is the principal fund raising event. While not formally a standing committee, members are recruited by the Nominating Committee but are not subject to term restrictions and serve at will. See a sample poster.

Human Resources
Works to establish formal procedures for evaluations, job descriptions, salary surveys, and addresses grievances for the church staff; members are from the Parish Committee.

Ministerial Internship
As a "teaching church," we have been blessed with a succession of ministerial interns, students from one of the area theological schools who are interested in becoming UU ministers. While principal supervision is the responsibility of the senior minister, the Ministerial Intern Committee is involved in the selection process, assists in the training by suggesting areas of involvement, sermon evaluation, works as a support group for the intern and provides critical evaluation to the UUA Fellowship Committee.

Ministry
Helps interpret the nature and scope of the ministry to the congregation; advises, counsels, and supports both the senior and associate minister and acts as a two way communications link between ministers and congregation. See a sample fair poster

Leadership Development :
Fills vacancies on standing committees once a year for the annual meeting in May. Formerly named the Nominating Committee, the Leadership Development Committee has a broadened role in working to match interests of congregants with appropriate parish needs during the whole year.

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Ongoing or Ad Hoc Groups

These groups are not appointed or elected. Instead they are formed by members of First Parish in response to a perceived need. They may continue for many years or be relatively short lived and disband when either the need or congregational support for the activity wanes.
Are you working with a group you don't see listed here? You may find the description under Adult Programs.   Otherwise, please send us a description of your group for posting.

Addictions Resources
Provides support to those concerned about addiction, whether in themselves, their families, or in friends. Some members of the Addictions Resources group are professionally involved in the addictions field. Others have dealt with addiction in themselves or in those close to them. The group does not provide counseling, but provides information about addiction, and about available resources, such as therapists and counselors, outpatient clinics, detoxes, or Twelve Step groups. See more detailed resource information provided by contact person, Jeff Roberts.

Alliance
Offers women of First Parish opportunities for for providing service in various ways and for socializing. Membership in the Alliance is open to all women of the church. Programs sponsored by the Alliance are often of broad interest and are open to all. See also Alliance current officers roster, bylaws and history.

Anti-Racism Committee
has focused on increasing our collective awareness of racism and on the role(s) that UUs are playing individually and collectively in dismantling systemic racist oppression Group sponsored events include retreats, services with guest speakers, film showings, book readings and discussions, and backing of social action initiatives.

Choir
Led by director, Laura Prichard, and accompanied by organist/pianist Wendy Covell, rehearses from 8 to 9:30 Thursday evenings and performs at most of the Sunday services during the church year. The choir is the most active ensemble in First Parish's music program, often combining with the Children's Choirs, the Symphonic Band, the Bell Choir, and the Brass Ensemble to present larger works. The choir makes an annual Service Trip over Memorial Day weekend each year (New Orleans, 2006; Martha's Vineyard, 2007), and presents many music-centered services, including the Winter Music Service (December), Christmas Eve Lessons and Carols, and the Spring Music Service (Palm Sunday). Traditional special music themes include: Water Communion (2nd Sunday of September), Hebrew Music Service (Fall), Hallowe'en Music (4th Sunday in October), Requiem Sunday (November), Mozart's Birthday (late January), Music for Spring (Easter), and Flower Communion (2nd Sunday in June). Smaller vocal ensembles, such as the UUlations (women's a cappella), the Intergenerational Women's Choir (Alliance Sunday, April), and the UUphonics (men) also contribute music regularly to our services, and are open to both choir members and other singers from the congregation. See more about music activities and schedule.

Jewish Connections
Is group of people from First Parish Unitarian Universalist of Arlington, Massachusetts. Some of us are Jewish, some have Jewish family members, some have Jewish children, some just love and enjoy Jewish ritual. We share a love of Jewish culture and tradition and seek to bring opportunities for Jewish ritual, celebration and gatherings to our congregation and our community. Specific activities have included:

• Tashlich ritual for Rosh Hashanah
• Break Fast gathering for Yom Kippur
• Shabbat dinner gatherings throughout the year
• Chanukah Latke Party
• Passover Seder
• Outreach to other Jewish UU groups

Email jewishconnections with questions.

Lay Ministry
The Lay Ministers of first Parish are members of the church specifically dedicated to serving the pastoral care needs of the congregation. Working in conjunction with the Ministerial staff, we accomplish this through visits, phone calls, cards and notes, and assisting with worship. Here are a few ideas regarding Lay Ministry for you to keep in mind.

Lay Ministry Support
If you would like to be contacted by a member of the Lay Ministry, you can email Lay Ministry . You can also leave a message in the Lay Ministry voice mailbox by calling the church at (781) 648-3799, ext. 18. Lay Ministers regularly monitor messages and will respond promptly.

Pastoral Care
Rev. Carlton Smith continues to act as primary contact for the First Parish Lay Ministry program, working in collaboration with Rev. John Marsh. If you or another church member or friend is in need of pastoral care, call (781) 648-3799, ext. 18. Please leave a message, and Carlton, John, or another Lay Minister will return your call.

Spoken Memorials
Lay Ministry collates requests for spoken memorials throughout the church year. You may request the naming of a loved one at any time. We do not repeat requests from year to year unless a request is resubmitted. If you would like to include a spoken memorial, please provide the specific information using the email link or Lay Ministry voice mailbox noted above.

The Lay Ministers
Click here to see the current Lay Ministers .

Library Committee
Updates and organizes the church library including evaluating the current collection, offering new books which can be donated, cataloguing and putting a loan procedure in place.

First Parish Meditation Group
By focusing on mind/body sensations in meditation, it is possible to become more mindful in daily life. We hold drop-in groups Mondays, gather at 6:00pm and start at 6:15 (in the preschool room) and Sundays, gather at 9:00am and start at 9:10 (next door at the Senior Center at Maple and Academy St)  We sit for 35 minutes in the style of Vipassana (Insight) Buddhist meditation, and beginners are welcome.   ALSO  - 2 ongoing discussion groups meet one Sunday night each month. A waiting list is now forming to join a group.  For more information, email meditation

Men's Group
Explores topics and issues relevant to men in today's world. Meetings are organized around a specific topic, which have included Balancing Work, Personal and Family Life; Men as fathers, Husbands and Partners; Male Friendships; Men as Spiritual Beings; and Our Fathers.

Stitch and Sew
The sewing group meets to make items for the Harvest Moon Fair and other church projects. All are welcome for one hour, two, or four. The group meets weekly on Tuesdays from March to November (except the Tuesdays after July 4th and Labor Day). Bring a sandwich and join them in the Pierce Room.